Can Your Job Warp Time?

I hate the kind of days when your time at work goes by so slowly. Even during the course of one day, parts of it can drag on forever and other parts can fly by. This morning flew by, but 3:00 to 3:15 seemed like an eternity. Then I looked up and the clock said 4:58!

I think I discovered the proximate cause of the weird time warp phenomenon. There happens to be a causal connection between time slowing down and having to sift through 300+ cases on Westlaw looking for the one that best fits your own case. Reading and skimming through cases is just pure torture sometimes, especially if what you want to find is really obscure. Similarly, trying to fathom how different legal doctrines work when you put them all together is also very time slowing.

Do you have any idea how long it took me to figure out how worker's compensation laws worked with the doctrine of implied indemnity when the parties are two subcontractors that do not have privity of contract?! My head hurt ALL DAY! I still didn't figure it out. The odd thing is that a westlaw search turned up very few Washington cases with the phrase "implied indemnity" in the text. I always think I'm missing something when my search turns up very few cases. Like the time I searched Oregon cases for the Oregon Dead Man's Statute. It took me about 45 minutes to realize that Oregon DIDN'T HAVE a Dead Man's Statute. I felt dumb having to explain that one to my billing supervisor...

Anyway, I can make time speed up just by typing. Seriously, typing up a summary, outline or statement of law makes time go by three times faster. Drafting any type of pleading or motion will do this as well. Also, the excitement of working on a brand new case as well the excitement of starting research on a new topic makes time speed by. But the farther into my research I go and the more frustrated I get, the more time begins to slow down again.

So, if I could just draft motions all day and start new research projects without having to finish them, I would be the happiest person ever. I would probably eat less junk at work too. Because let's face it, when you're bored and time is standing still, the only remedy is a donut, bag of chips or a candy bar.